What is the particular historical relationship between scholarship on
women and theories about gender?
Although different anthropologists chose to examine women through
cross-cultural analysis, historical materialism etc., what was common
among the theorists prior to the new approaches which were developed in
the eighties? Please give examples of the common tendencies and place
these tendencies in the social context from which they emerged.
What are the shortcomings of the public/domestic dichotomy according to
Lamphere?
Karen Sacks was inspired by Engels, but she provided a more nuanced view
of women. What was her contribution?
Since the physiological and biological differences between males and
females are a given, what is the benefit of social-scientific and in
particular anthropological inquiry into gender relations in various
societies? Make use of at least two examples from our readings to
support your arguments.
What is the ethnocentric bias in studies of women and gender?
Ortner argues that
1. "(A) woman’s physiology is seen as closer to nature".
2. "(A) woman’s social role is seen as closer to nature".
3. "(A) woman’s psyche is seen as closer to nature".
What is the value of these associations in our analysis of gender
constructs?